Does anyone have plants that stand up exceptionally well to roadside conditions? I have seen what results from shrubs too close this winter. Need to do some revamping.
Good Perennials for Roadside?
I have perennial beds along the entire roadside of my property. Although I rake off a couple of inches of salt and sand every Spring I have never lost a plant to it. I've got a little bit of everything in there...Lilies, hardy Hibiscus, Bulbs, Helenium...
Wow Hardy Hibiscus? I have a hard time with mine being pampered. Maybe that is my problem. Actually it's the sawflies do you get those?
Never seen one...I don't give mine any extra care except maybe a drink if it doesn't rain for a couple of weeks. I've got maybe 10 of them. This is a pic. of one of them, this bed is right along the road.
Ooh I love them. I have a pic of my beautiful Fantasia with the sawfly damage lol. http://davesgarden.com/tools/journal/showimage.php?eid=106880
Very pretty!
Thank you. I love your bed, it is so pretty. Here is a better picture of it.
I would say many of the drought tolerant perennials are also salt-tolerant. This would include, but are certainly not limited to, sedum, coneflower, thistle, goldenrod, ornamental grasses, sea holly, Rissian sage, etc.
This message was edited Mar 24, 2009 9:44 PM
Oh good I have a bunch of those I can move out there. Thanks for the ideas Victor. : )
Daylilies do well along the road, as do Siberian iris. Coreopsis is another good choice, and thyme. Trees that I have along the road are oak, wild and cultivars of crab apple, wild honeysuckle bush (not the vine types), choke cherry, ash (don't know the variety, but I'm assuming it's native to this area), bridal wreath spirea, old-fashion rambler rose, a vibernum. I also have a large rhodie by the road that does well.
At one time my mother had planted junipers along the road, but the salt killed them. I have noticed that many conifer types don't do well with the salt, nor do junipers and cedars. I would think that anything that likes alkaline soil would do well with road salt.
Karen
Rugosas do well with salt also. They grow and bloom alongside the beaches with No human intervention. In fact, they do better with no care whatsoever.
I have some Rugosas I was thinking of planting by the road.
Karen
I know that the daylily species, or what is currently being sold at HD/Lowe's as 'Kwanso,' will tolerate living on Mars, and probably the moon...just a hunch. If you are looking for a large area, you can always plant those plants that most people want to "chuck" after awhile. The 'Lamb's Ear' (stachys) should do well, the chameleon plant, pachysandra, periwinkle (both variegated and unvariegated)...If this area is shady at all, the old fashioned hostas, variegated/mediovariegated would thrive also. I'm NOT suggesting that you plant any of these guys/gals, but if you are looking to fill in quickly, and more than likely cheaply, I would suggest them highly...I think just about everything I mentioned is either highly or moderately invasive though!
Joe Pye Weed is a nice, robust, native perennial that attracts lots of butterflies & can be seen on rural roadsides in my area. Bit tall for a suburban or urban area perhaps.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/11/
There are smaller varieties of Joe Pye I googled joe pye "little Joe" I believe its under 5 feet tall.
Sherrie, I have a big old clump of Kwanso, so I can attest that it grows with the most minimal of care.
I hope to plant some Joe Pye this summer.
Wow, Willie, that's Kwanso? I gotta get me some!!! Quick, before I pass out!
i have dayillies (tiger), black eyed susan, and cone flowers - i do not take care of this area at all - sand and salt remain there all year and it gets a large dose of pine needles (its under a grove of white pine) and leaves. I do mow the leaves to bits in the fall and leave them behind.
this will be the first season for BES and CF out there and the first that the daylilies get any sun to speak of due to the new home built across the street in the past year.
Yes - that's the first I saw of Kwanso (reminds me of Kwanzaa!), and it's very pretty!
Me too Victor. I also have a Kwanza Cherry tree.
I have very similar conditions to wha - lots of pine needles and sand/salt. I don't think anything that likes a lot of moister would work for me. Like Joe Pye although I do see it on the sides of the road in moist areas, so that would definitely be a good idea for someone with better soil than I have. I do love them- I have one in my butterfly garden that I water regularly when needed. Out buy the road is a pain to water, so I am trying to keep stuff that prefers dry soil there. The soil here is very sandy - I like the rugosa and daylily idea. I have some ditch lilies out there already and they seem to tolerate it well. I planted some boxwoods and a rhodie that looks like a pjm but it was sold to me as a Korean Azeala. It holds it's leaves though so that can't be right. I found the problem with these is it is right in the spots that end up with a giant heap of snow, from the plows and the snow thrower. So they have had some branches broken from the past two snowy winters. I have tried Malva Fastigiata, Russian Sage, Stella Doro's. I guess I'm off to a good start - it just seems like stuff is taking forever to get a good size. I had planted a Cornell Pink Korean Rhodie and it kicked the bucket after last winter. Thanks for all the great ideas! I will be sure to try a lot of things everyone's recommended.
I wanted JoePye but had to pass because of the dry clay soil here
I have a lot of Kwanso (Willie, I like your picture of it), and it's a great DL species. Meridith, if you would like some for the cost of postage, just D-mail me and let me know. I have lots to spare, and I could dig them this weekend. Anyone else who would like some for postage, I have plenty. Please D-mail me.
I also have lots of periwinkle by the road, and it handles the salt without any problems.
Karen
Here's a pic of my Kwanso.
Those are very pretty! Thank you for the generous offer, but I have to make myself stop getting daylilies. I have ordered quite a few and another Dg friend is supposed to send me some as soon as she can dig them. I don't want to bite off more than I can chew. I have at least twenty flats of stuff I started from seed that will need planting out too. And not one bed completely ready fot any of it! :)
I have a "dwarf" Joe Pye that was supposed to be 5 ft, and it's around 7ft. This will be the third year and it's doing well. I have clay too JoAnn, and don't water that often.
nutsfor daylily -since you seem to be a good person to ask. How do you feel about growing evergreen and semi evergreen daylilies here in new england? I have picked a few that were one or the other and I was wondering what to expect for them. Do they bloom later than listed or do you ever lose them? I didnt' know if I should be more carefulof protecting them in winter or if they are just as easy as the dormants.
I ammended the soil where my Joe Pye is and I use a soaker hose when we haven't had rain for a while. I wish mine gets taller than last year. Mine was only 5 ft and I have it in the back of the bed - so I was hoping for 7' plus. : )
thanks deb.I might reconsider.
I have daylilies, dwarf mugho pine, heath and heather in the strip between sidewalk and road and they have all done well with little or no care. The heather contributes color in winter--for several months I have had red and green leaves and white and pink blossoms there, even after being buried in drifts from the town snowplows.
Now Karen's pic looks like the 'ditch lilies' I have and am used to. Willie's photo looks quite different. They really don't look like the same plant. Willie's has multiple layers.
might just be the angle
here's another shot from the same clump.
Meredith, on your question about the evergreen and semievergreen DL's, it all depends on where they were hybridized. You can be assured that on the ones that were hybridized in the north they will be winter hardy. But southern hybridized ones are a different story. Some could be hardy and others not at all. Your best bet is to buy from northern growers.
Karen
Still looks 'double' to me, Will.
Should look 'Triple'
;-)
Here's another picture of my Kwanso, which I think is a better one.
Karen
They're beautiful, aren't they? Much to Mom's dismay, I keep a patch of them in the yard always.
I have shrub roses (bonica) real close to the road. They do great.
I have an old semi-ev DL 'Carl Milikin' which has been here for years & it does all right, but try & stick to the dorments.
Does anyone know if the Knockout roses would do well along the road? I want to plant some there this year.
Karen